Former Agency Owner Standridge Sentenced to Prison in Arkansas

A Mount Ida, Ark., man has been sentenced to five years in prison for money laundering and wire fraud.

Federal prosecutors say 58-year-old Steven Alan Standridge was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Hot Springs.

Standridge was the founder of the Steve Standridge Insurance Inc., based in Mount Ida.

Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Jay Bradford suspended Standridge’s insurance license in 2010, alleging that he falsified collateral used to purchase another insurance organization and improperly retained and kept premium financing for a commercial client.

Standridge pleaded guilty in July to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering as part of a plea agreement in which 33 other counts were dismissed by federal prosecutors in both the eastern and western districts of Arkansas.

Prosecutors say Standridge submitted false documents to obtain a loan that he said would be used to purchase other insurance agencies – but instead used the $2.7 million he received for other purposes.

Prosecutors say the FBI and the IRS assisted in the investigation.